joe johns is live from washington monitoring the situation. joe, what is the latest? >> well, chris what was a hometown story has become national news all because of knewly ex- -- newly exposed e-mail traffic. the scandal involving closed leans at the nation's busiest crossing has exploded and enshared governor christie. it started in september when several leans of the -- lanes of the george washington bridge were shut down dpr four days without warning. resulting in an hour's long traffic nightmare for the town. and now a letter from an emf official suggests even emergency

responders were delayed. there were questions whether the gridlock was politically motivated payback for the democrat mayor of fort lee. cnn obtained text and e-mails that seemed to be the closest thing to a smoking gun. it was sent august 13th. a message from the e-mail account of bring jet ann kelly one of the governor's top appointees at the agency that controls the bridge. when the mayor called about the gridlock, kelly then e maled to see if anyone has called him back. the official excuse, a traffic stud reviewing safety patterns for toll lanes. christie later denied his office was involved in the bridge problem. >> you really are not serious

with that question. >> late wednesday the governor issued a statement responding to the revelations. i am outraged and deeply saddened. not only was i mislead by a member of staff, but the conduct was made without my knowledge. the question now is whether any state or federal laws were broken. >> those that are responsible for this act, they can no longer be in positions of power in government. >> but now residents of new jersey are ankled by the scandal. >> i think the story is beyond belief. >> you don't hold people hostage for whatever political reason. >> the other headache for governor christie is that he did not apparently know what was going on in his own office. while he says he was mislead by a member of the staff, others may have had knowledge of what was going on. the governor has promised

accountability for those responsible. >> those headaches may only be beginning. no matter who authorized those lane closures, as joe mentioned, an emergency services coordinator says that it delayed response times to four medical situations going on in the area. one involved a 91-year-old woman who was unconscious waiting for an ambulance to arrive. she later died. much more on that angle of this developing story. >> reporter: good morning, kate, it took exactly one day to raise the red flag warning that lane closures were causing traffic that could have life threatening consequences. merge responses were taking up to three times that long. he sites four cases in which there were delays. two involving people with chest

pains and a fourth involving a car wreck. traffic was so bad he had to jump the curb in order to reach the scene. he says pay medics were stuck in traffic. they had to meet the ambulance on route to the hospital where that woman later died. noticing these delays, he immediately wrote a letter to the mayor. he writes this new traffic pattern is causing unnecessary delays for emergency services to arrive on scene for medical emergencies, perhaps some type of modification can be made. he says when he noticed that traffic in fort lee back in september, he immediately contacted a police officer. he explained it was all caused by a new traffic pattern here at the toll booth. we're going to have much more on the christie crisis throughout the show today and we're going to talk to one of his democratic rivals on this

topic. also breaking overnight, dennis rodman apologizing for his melt down here on "new day." he is not abandoning his friend kim jong-un. that's why he's getting hit in the first place, right? he ever sang happy birthday to him. new criticism for rodman after that little situation. let's go with more on the fallout. >> good morning. well dennis red monday still in north korea. we're hearing reports this morning that he's going skiing with kim jong-un. his public list says he blames booze and stress for his bizarre out bursts and comments about kenneth bae. overnight dennis rodman admitted in a statement to cnn that he was out of bounds. he says, i want to apologize.

i take full responsibility for my actions. some of my teammates were leaving because of pressure from their families and business associates. my dreams of basketball diplomacy were quickly falling apart. he had exploded in an interview with cnn's chris cuomo. >> i don't give a rat's ass what you think. >> in his apology, rod man explains his outburst, i had been drinking, i was upset i was overwell med. it's knot an excuse, it's the truth. >> happy birthday to you. >> singing happy birthday to leader kim jong-un and giving him a bow. >> you, sir, let me know.

>> rodman sparked a fire storm with the seeming justification for kenneth bae to chris cuomo leaving bae's family back home shocked and disappointed. >> do you understand what he did? do you understand what he did in his country? >> you tell me. what did he do. >> you tell me. you tell me. why is he held captive. >> but now rodman is back peddleing. i want to apologize to my teammates and my management team. i also want to apologize to chris cuomo. i embarrassed a lot of people. at this point i should know better than to make political statements. one of rodman's teammates, charles smith, he says he now questions whether they did the right thing going to north korea. in a birthday gift to kim, rodman lost to the north korean

national team. their loss another apparent victory for north korea's propaganda machine. the u.s. is still working very hard to get kenneth bae out of north korea. they tell us they're working diplomatic channels through china. there's also a u.n. mission and they're trying to get their envoy into north korea to get bae out. >> all right, gym, thanks for following up on this, appreciate it. >> i've been saying ever since this happened, i believe that rodman is well-intentioned but misguided. he did have to apologize to the bae family though. any suggestion as to why this man is being detained is very dangerous. >> you never asked for an

apology. >> it takes a lot to defend us in this business. what is relevant is what's going on with kenneth bae and also to separate out the team. they say they went there for cultural exchange. that's fine. they were getting paid. that's a decision. but when it is positioned as being a gift to this man, it makes it a little bit more complicated. and that's why we're going to bring on one of the wives of one of the players there to give her perspective on what her husband knew, cliff robertson. but remember, the headline is, kenneth bae is being held there. there are human atrocities you would not imagine that are going on in that country that deserve attention. hopefully the state department can use some of the energy that rodman stirred up. >> let's turn back to

washington. hairy redi could force a key vote. over extending the benefits and how to pay for it. now there are signs that prospects for passing the bill may be dwindling. jim acost ta is live outside the white house this morning. what is the latest? >> reporter: here we go again. just when you saw that very small surprise earlier this week when a handful of republicans jumped on board to begin debate other the long term jobless. now all of a sudden, a kip l republicans are saying, you know, we may not vote to end this debate. they are insisting that there are offsets to cover the costs of the unemployment benefits. they want budget cuts to pay for those costs for 1.3 million americans who have been

unemployed for a long period of time. democrats are saying they may not go along with it. they have not seen any proposals from republicans that they like. there is a new poll out, guys, that shows 58% of americans support extending these unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless. but that same poll also shows republicans against that extension. so here we go all over again, democrats and republicans squabbling whether or not to push this through. we're here earlier this week, prospects looked dim for this getting going in the senate. we're going to have to wait and see just how this plays out. >> thanks so much. let's take a look at the headlines at this hour. new developments in a navy helicopter crash off the southern virginia coast. a second sailor has now died.

two others were rescued and said to be in stable condition. the certainly is now on in ice cold water for a fifth sailor aboard that chopper. the president met wednesday with the heads of the nsa, cia and fbi along with the director of national intelligence. according to sources, the president is expected to tighten restrictions on spying on foreign leaders. the first known avian flu fatality in north america has been confirmed. canada's health minister says the victim was likely infected through exposure to birds. they say it's an isolated case. new developments out of utah where hundreds of same sex marriages will not be recognized while the matter is debated in the courts.

they already issued an injunction stopping new marriages. a federal appeals court could hear arguments as soon as march. and the people have spoken and they've got a whole lot of love for sandra bullock. and she shared the award for favorite movie with george clooney. it's a big night also for justin timberlake. he took home three awards. >> sit down. i've been up here before. >> i think that's fun for them too, right? because it's the people that are watching the movies. i think it's great. >> macklemore, give it back to the people. >> so you know the expression,

this too shall pass? here's the news, indra made some calls and we will see some warning. thank you for yiezing your powers -- using your powers. >> just so we all know, right? it's very, very smart. let's talk about the cold air. it is retreating out there. only seeing below normal temperatures close to the poles right now. we like this. look at this. by friday, especially see that recovery down in southeast florida. 11 degrees above normal. what a difference. talk about the cold frigid air everyone's been dealing with. by saturday, pretty much everyone is above normal. 20 degrees above normal temperatures are expected. here's the first one bringing icing and light rain around tennessee today. it dissipates quickly.

it's the system behind it that will start to change everything. the backside is bringing the winds out of the south. even though there's a cold front, we're talking about the winds coming out of the south as well. also some rain is coming our way. by the midwest on friday, we will start to see showers. that same system makes it way to the northeast by the weekend. nothing like we saw the last several days. keep in mind the first system, it takes some time for recovery. the second system should be pretty much all rain. maybe a little bit of snow a little bit farther north. overall, not bad, temperatures 20 degrees above normal. yes, you're welcome. >> you can even feel the change yesterday. >> i'm digging it. it's a meet roll gentleman call term. >> coming up next, breaking news. we've been following the story very closely.

an american held for nine months in the uae. he has been released. . a live report on that next. and also the chris christie bridge scandal. it is certainly national headlines right now. some are asking why did it take fox news six hours to even mention it. was that process or purpose? we have an expert in to discuss. your eyes really are unique. in fact, they depend on a unique set of nutrients.

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>>. welcome back. breaking news on a story we've been following closely. an american who's been jailed in the uae for months is now free

and could soon be heading home. shezanne cassim was arrested for making a parody video. but the government thought it was a threat to national security. hi there, what do you know? >> reporter: look, we know that shezanne cassim has been let out of prison. his family has been fighting for nine months. they went public with the story because they simply felt like nothing was being done for him. but he is going to be heading home. we also do know there were several other people in prison with him. we understand also that they will be set free as well. they are from here in the uae, so not only an american, but folks from here have been caught up in this case. and none of them understand exactly why they were put in prison. they were convicted in what the

uae says was embarrassing them aproduced. now, the family is just hoping to finally get to hug and see shezanne cassim again. he came here trying to make his fortune in the middle east in the place that is a big business hub that a lot of folk wants to come to. >> take a moment. you can only imagine this news is such welcome news to his family who's been here on "new day," to everyone who's been supporting him, the state department and his lawmakers. they've all been trying to push to find out why he's been put behind bars in the first place. one of the more surprising things about this was that it happened in the united air rab emphysema rats. what are you hearing this case does to that image.

>> reporter: it's interesting, when this video was first put online, only a few people had seen it. but after the story, tens of thousands of people went online to see exactly what it was that landed these guys, one of whom was a business analyst in jail. so i think it's done quite a bit of damage in the lines of people who don't know what the line is and where the law is. cassim was in jail for five months before he understood exactly what the charges were. there's a lot of questions here making a lot of people uncomfortable here about exactly what to expect when they come to the uae. >> i remember someone said he better be out before the rolling stones perform there just kind of showing the head fake of what really is going on. regardless, we wish him a very safe and very quiktrip home. thank you for following the story for us.

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problem, but for some people, it could make it harder. a jobs report from the private sector yesterday. they think we could see 250,000 jobs created in december and guys, a jobless rate of 6.8%. we're getting bit by bit, you guys. >> a trend, we hope. >> a trend. even if they're arguing about jobless benefits in washington, we are still seeing these little signs that it is thawing for people. >> they're talking about extending unemployment benefits when you should just get past that and talk about how do you keep feeding this job market. >> going to take a break. coming up next on "new day," a crisis for chris christie. a political vendetta circling the governor. the major networks are all over

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welcome back to "new day," the next few hours could hold the key to chris christie's future. the new jersey governor is denying he had anything to do with closing lanes on the new jersey bridge to punish a

political rival. will he speak out today, and if he does, what does he need to say? the governor's brash unpoll jet ik style has served him well. we have more from trenton, new jersey. >> reporter: governor christie's brash style pushed him into the spotlight. >> we're new jersey. we still night. we still yell, but when he fight, we fight for those things that really matter. >> thank you all very much and i'm sorry for the idiot over there. >> reporter: and at times, challenges himself. and his own party. when super storm sandy devastated parts of his state on the eve of the 2012 presidential

election, the republican governor praised the democratic president when he visited. >> i cannot think the president enough. >> reporter: he later broad sided republicans in the house for staling on a sandy relief funding bill. and just this week, christie held an event bulking conservatives on immigration celebrating a law allowing undocumented students to get in-state tuition at new jersey colleges. he was criticized for talking too much about himself and too little about mitt romney. >> real leaders don't follow polls, real leaders change polls. >> reporter: he knows he teped on toes. >> are there times i wish i wouldn't have said something? sure. what i think people see in me is that i'm genuine.

i am who i am. >> so governor christie's scandal is making national news. it's not a surprise when you hear everything that is involved and the allegations at play. but not every network is covering it the same it seems. fox news didn't mention the story until mid afternoon yesterday. let's get more details on this. here's the host of reliable sources. good morning, brian. >> good morning. >> there's good reason everyone is talking about the story when you start reading some of the e-mails and text messages that went back a forth. >> right. >> people watching fox news yesterday afternoon weren't really hearing anything about it. >> they wondered why fox news isn't covering the story. there was a segment for about 5 minutes at 9:00 p.m. it got people wondering what was going on. and the reason why people are so

curious is because the chairman of fox news has in the past tried to enlist chris christie to run for president. so people sometimes watch fox news to read the tea leaves and to wonder is fox avoiding the story to help chris christie. >> and it also comes at the same time as that book about fox news is about to come out where it talks about that ails is deeply involved in republican politics. >> it has lots of stories about him trying to enlist presidential candidates like chris christie. christie turned him and everybody else down in 2012. by fox news is an important place for republicans to hear about these candidates. if they don't hear a lot about the scandal, they may not take it as seriously. >> if they support the cause of the left, they protect the left, they advocate against fox news?

haven't we seen that it really is the right is represented by fox and the left is represented by msnbc. >> it's a lot more true than it was, say, five years ago. at msnbc, they were one of the first national television personalities to take this bridge situation seriously. >> and because she attacks the right as often as possible. >> it was a story that was red made for her and msnbc. what i find fascinating is the fact that this was a local angle, a local story by a local reporter in a local paper, yet it has much bigger ramifications. >> the traffic reporter -- and by the way, who even knew this local newspaper had a traffic

column. this is -- it's one of the reasons why this story is resonating. he was writing about it in september. he kept following up, following up, following up. and he was right to be digging. he found a story here that's become national news. it's important to have a strong local press. >> this started as a kind of big bundle of allegations. >> right and nine times out of ten there's nothing there. >> not enough to take to chris christie. if you go with chris christie, be ready for a fight. now that they have these e-mails, this just got real. >> people sort of suspect this about politicians sometimes. we rarely see the e-mails that prove the pettiness. >> this is why people waited until this. >> absolutely. >> and of course, it's one of the few things that affects everybody. traffic affects everybody.

this feels like it could affect you. people are going to wonder, can i blame my governor for this, can i blame my mayor for this. let's take a look at the latest headlines. an apology now from former nba star dennis rodman for that outburst. in a statement, rodman says he was stressed and had been drinking. he specifically apologized to the family of kenneth bae, the american being held in north year ya, saying at this point he should know better than to make political statements. lib january groups e suspected of caring out the attack in benghazi. they are making its fist public accusation of responsibility for that incident. also singling out a former guantanamo detain knee as the

leader of the group. some surprising new developments in the condition of the california girl declared brain dead. the lawyer for jahi mcmath's family says the girl is improving after two proceeding, adding that the little girl should have gotten that treatment a month ago. they also say the family have gotten death threats in the wake of this case. a shocking video with him getting ber rated with adults. the police officers union in omaha, nebraska, is drawing fire from the police chief, aclu and african-american leaders for posting that video on its website. want to show you really amazing rescue caught on firefighter's camera. portland fire and police say the man that was pinned under a car

stuck on railroad tracks by lifting the vehicle with their own hands. it had hit a guardrail, spun onto the tracks. they had to act fast. apparently a freight train was close by. that man was sent to the hospital. no word on his condition. >> super human strength almost to lift that up. amazing. >> that is amazing. coming up on "new day," the obama administration rush to go the defense of the president's war policy and vice president biden after scathing criticisms from robert gates in his upcoming memoir. plus the price of a super bowl ticket, people will pay anything, right? not so much. one fan is suing the nfl saying they've made it impossible for the average fan to attend the big game.

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welcome back. new developments in washington. the new memoir by robert gates has the white house scrambling. he screwers vice president biden. the white house is now trying to respond. trying to skirt even more controversy. jim acosta is live with more. what has them so worried? >> reporter: there's a lot in that brook to be worried about. the white house has been cautious in response to the book from robert gates while at the same time thanking the former

defense secretary for his service. they are politely disagreeing with his assessments, especially when they come to joe biden. >> read any good books lately? >> it was a warm and fuzzy aamendment to soften some of the razor sharp criticisms. jay carney said, that's what the president expected when he hired gates. >> when you pick a team of rivals you do so in part because you expect competing points of view and competing opinions. >> reporter: carney batted down the sharpest headlines of gate's book. >> he has been an excellent counselor and advisor to the president for the past five years. >> reporter: and the president's commitment to the war in afghanistan. he praised mr. obama's decision

to dra down forces there. >> i believe obama was right in these decisions. that's from the book. >> reporter: in other parts, he says he saw the president make decisions opposed with his advisors. wesley clark believes gates is just trying to get a lot off his chest. >> i do think it has to be taken with a certain grain of salt. when he makes comments about the president, frex. >> reporter: there's still no response from the commander in chief. the wlous did -- who you did allow photographers access, but denied it was a show of support. >> i don't think anybody who has covered is or knows the president and the vice president knows how this who is functions, has any doubt about the president's faith in vice president biden. >> reporter: reporters however were not permitted into the room, drawing questions about

access. >> this president has answered more questions as his immediate predecessors. >> reporter: now some of the criticism in gate' book in relation to his handling and dealings appears to deal with the early obama administration. and that former pay reus was thinking of running in 2012. the president meets with people on the surveillance activities over at the nsa today. >> many excited to hear from bob gates himself. thank you so much, jim. let's get back over to indra. it's feeling a little warmer. >> are you happy now? >> yes. >> we're looking at the jet stream lifting out. so things are improving. notice that's what the

temperatures were like yesterday. let's look at through the weekend. so much better. we're talking about temperatures in the mid-50s, even 60s expected in places like d.c. remember, the cold air is going back. so, yes, chicago still below normal today. check out the southeast though. starting to see normal temperatures. it is tomorrow when you really start to see that change. by the weekend, 20 degrees above normal, but that doesn't mean we're without rain. pacific northwest getting some 5 inches of rain. still, warm for everybody and that is the take away. >> we were so below normal and so quickly back to normal. >> so below normal. so below normal, yes. >> you watched her dress, it matches the maps. >> wow. >> you had a cold dress on, cold

maps. >> they do, right? >> how cool would it be if the dress became the map? >> it's called a green screen. you wear green, it would be. >> that is the next level. that's the next wave of new media. coming up on "new day." good idea. tweet me about it. so we have a guy suing the nfl for pricing out joe fan. he says it's not just wrong, it's illegal. we're going to tell you what the league has to say about it. you leave the house in good shape? yea. yea, of course. ♪ [ sportscaster talking on tv ] last-second field go-- yea, sure ya did. [ male announcer ] introducing at&t digital life. personalized home security and automation. get professionally monitored security for just $29.99 a month.

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the baseball hall of fame welcomed three new members to their club yesterday. but often the call to the halls about who didn't get in. the biggest names from the steroids era were shut out. what? all right. but let's talk about what you know. >> yeah, lots of big snubs yesterday. as expected, but once again, the mega stars from the steroids era, they all fell way short of the votes they needed to get in. and they actually lost votes since last year, and it's looking less and less likely that these guys will ever get into baseball's hall of fame. the nba fined j.r. smith $50,000 yesterday for once again trying

to untie an opponents shoe. then after trying to do it again tuesday night, the nba slapped him with a fine. smith has apologized for his actions, but the nicks are fed up with his act. they're now trying to trade him. $50,000. i don't think he's going to try to untie anymore shoes. >> on what planet do you think you're not going to get caught for that? >> on what planet does it become worth 50 grand. which foul shot was it? was it the first or the second? >> it was the second. bad. that's bad. >> it's bad on the first, too. >> now first he can -- the first he can tie it before the second. the second, he's interfering with the game. >> i might have pulled that in high school once. only once, though. >> we're going to move from basketball to foot football. the average cost for tickets,

can you believe this? close to 3,500 dollars. one new jersey businessman is now suing the nfl. he claims the league is withholding tickets to drive up prices. now he wants them to pay up. we've got john berman on the case. >> how much would you pay? doesn't that sound awesome. that sounds awesome, doesn't it? people like jay here would like to be able to do that. they'd like to be able to afford seeing the super bowl in person next month, but they can't. it's just too expensive. now one fan is taking on the big money of the big game. it's packed with super star athletes, super star performances and it promises super high television ratings. but if you're looking for a seat

inside the stadium. >> the true fan can't afford to go to the game and enjoy it. >> the average ticket price has risen by $200 in the past five years. they are soaring into the thousands via secondary markets. one fan is so upset, he's suing the nfl after shelling out $4,000 for two tickets. much higher than face value. >> i think all the corporate big wigs are taking all the tickets. >> his lawsuit claims the league violated the consumer fraud act by only releasing 1,000 tickets. >> so with demand being so intense and the supply, right, being so low, obviously you have this gouging that comes about and it becomes very problematic for the common fan that wants to

go to the game. >> according to the nfl, roughly 75,000 tickets are given to the teams who are supposed to sell them at face value to fans. but the lawsuit says it instead offers them to resellers who grossly inflate the price. the lawsuit claims one such reseller packaged their tickets for a whooping $19,000. >> so the nfl claims the ticket distribution process has been in existence for years and is well documented, we are confident it is in compliance with all applicable laws. you have to shell out a lot of cash to go to that game. >> at home is where your snacks are better. >> the thing about that is you showed video of andrew luck and his awesome touchdown. coming up on "new day," the latest on the scandal

surrounding new jersey governor chris christie. we have to know what did he know, when did he know it. we're going to talk to a critic of christie for his take on the situation. and dennis rodman apologizes. we'll get the reaction from the wife of one of the players that joined rodman and talk to her about why her husband wanted to go. farmer: hello, i'm an idaho potato farmer.

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christie to answer allegations he choked traffic to win city deliberately. hearings to be held today. lives were even put at risk. his critics are digging in for a night. dennis rodman apologizes. what he's blaming for his bizarre interview right here on "new day." the wife of one of his teammates speaks out live. the battle for pay. a new stud on why men make more money that women. it's not the reason you think. >> your "new day" starts right now. >> good morning. welcome back to "new day." it's thursday, january 9th. 7:00 in the east. a major scandal is erupting around new jersey governor chris christie this morning that could leave his presidential

aspirations in jeopardy. calls growing for an investigation, why e-mails linked to a top christie staffer, they suggest a move, closing lanes on the george washington bridge apparently to punish a mayor of a new jersey town that did not support christie. christie announcing he knew nothing. now we're hearing about more problems. school buses delayed for hours, first responders held up, possibly even leading to a woman's death. there will be hearings on the closures set for today. the big question right now is when will the governor speak. joe, what's the latest. >> you know, this started out as a hometown inconvenience story on a bridge between new york and new jersey, by now it's become national news all because of the newly exposed e-mail traffic between members of the governor's inner circle.

this morning, the pressure is mounting. >> that's not the kind of leadership that new jersey needs, and it's certainly not the kind of leadership the nation needs. >> the new jersey bridge e-mails igniting a full blown scandal with increasing calls for a federal investigation. >> there's more than enough evidence to warrant an investigation to determine what -- we need to know what this governor knew and when he knew it. >> and now this, new revelations that the actions of the christie aids may have -- aides may have put lives in danger. wednesday afternoon, christie released a written statement. he did not apologize, but blamed the problems on his staff. "i am outraged and deeply saddened to learn that not only was i mislead by a member of my staff, but this conduct was made without my knowledge." his administration is accused of

shutting down several lanes of the george washington bridge for several dates in september. the mayor of that town had refused to endorse christie. at the time, christie's office denied. >> i actually was the guy working the cones out there. you really are not serious with that question. >> cnn received texts and e-mails that proved otherwise. time for traffic problems in fort lee. that e-mail was sent from bring jet ann kelly. god it, he -- got it, he replied. when the mayor of fort lee called about the problem, kelly e-mailed them to find out if anyone called him back. radio silence was the response. they want an investigation. >> his statement and actions

thus far have proven that he's not the straight shooter that he has claimed to be. and the questions require answers and he needs to step up and -- and face the music and answer those questions. >> there are tons of questions still out there. hearings today, calls for an investigation. the other headache for governor christie is that he didn't know what was going on in his own office. while it says he was mislead by a member of his staff, the e-mails seems to suggest that others may have had knowledge of what was going on. >> many new jersey lawmakers are yoit raged by these allegations of political retribution. here's one of them. he's a democratic state senator for new jersey. senator, thank you so much for coming in this morning. so we know that there are hearings that are going to be held today. many people wanting to hear from the governor himself.

you're also calling for an investigation. will you be requesting a formal investigation in. >> i will. not only the u.s. attorney of new jersey but the southern district of new york and the manhattan da. >> you don't think what you're going to hear from the governor will be enough? >> there's certainly reasonable suspicion that criminal acts have been involved here. we have wreckless endangerment of people's lives and possibly negligent criminal homicide. those have to be pursued by the authorities of the u.s. attorneys office. >> why suspect isn't this is situation where we seem to have discovered the ugly side of politics? >> this crosses a line. >> what is the line that was crossed? >> the line that was crossed is

that people's lives were endangered. emergency response vehicles, people -- children not being able to get to school, that's an abuse of governmental authority endangering people's lives. that's not politics. >> right. you understand that's going to be the question, though, right? >> sure. >> it's always, well, this is the blood sport. you're saying this is more than sport. >> for sure. that's why the u.s. attorneys have to get involved to get down to the bottom of it. what about all those redacted names on the e-mails? we still don't know who's behind that. >> and senator, do you really believe that there could be allegations of negligent homicide here? >> what i said was recognizeless endangerment of people's lives. someone died here. now, whether it was criminally

negligent homicide, we don't know. someone died as a result of an abuse of governmental authority. >> before you get there, do you not think that the governor deserves the benefit of the doubt until you hear more from him? >> first of all, this is a governor who has said to national republicans, we should do whatever it takes to win. he set the tone in his administration for whatever it takes to win and obviously people took that way too far. >> right. well, look, power plays happen in politics. let me ask you this though, one of the main questions with the governor is whether he was driving this bus. staffers can have their own moves where they keep the man or woman in power out of it for what we call plausible deniability. could that be the case here? >> i don't believe the governor was involved in the lane closures. he's not that stupid. but what about the coverup?

that we don't know. people -- his deputy chief of staff was involved in the lane choe sures. so he may very well be -- and i would suspect that he was part of the coverup. that's a political story for sure. okay? but the bigger thing is, is the criminal actions. >> at what point, what is the bar for you of the governor must step down in. >> wow. >> that's where you're going senator. you're asking for formal investigations. you're going to bring out the big guns. >> i have said this makes poul look like mary pop opinions. unless the governor was involved in the actual lane closures, no, it's not going to affect him being governor. certainly it's going to affect his credibility for the state of

new jersey and nationwide. >> when you talk -- put the criminal conversation aside for a second. politically, is there any -- people looking at this will say of course a state senator who butted heads with him is going to jump on this right away. is there anything you could hear from the governor that would put this to rest politically for you? >> not likely. i mean, i think this is an incredibly damaging politically for him because it's the tenor of his administration. he's -- he's scored a lot of political points by being the tough guy, by taking no prisoners. now the chickens are coming home to roost. >> you think they do something in the christie administration that others do not, or you think they just got caught. >> i think it's a blood sport that even in new jersey has been taken to a level that we have not seen before. >> great to meet you. thank you so much for coming in.

all right. and just a note of course, we will have much more coverage on christie's scandal throughout the show. other break niez. dennis rodman admitting he stepped out of bounds. he apologized for his "new day" melt down and he wants to know that it was a function not of hate, but of alcohol and stress. >> reporter: good morning. rodman apologizes, rodman goes skiing in north korea. he is on his way to a multi-million dollar ski resort, a pet project of jong-un. he blamed stress for his bizarre outburst and alarming comments about kenneth bae. overnight, former nba player dennis rodman admitted in a statement to cnn that was he was

out of bounds. i want to apologize, i take full responsibility for my actions, it had been a very stressful day. some of my teammates were leaving. my dreams of basketball dib masscy were yik -- diplomacy were quickly falling apart. it comes in the wake of a wild week where he exploded in an interview with cnn's chris cuomo. >> i don't give a rat's ass what you think. >> dennis -- >> in his apology rod man explains his outburts. i had been drinking. i was upset, overwell med. >> he ended the trip with even more bizarre images. >> ♪ happy birthdy to you >> singing happy birthday to kim jong in.

>> do you sir, let me know -- >> rodman sparked a fire storm with his seeming justification for the imprisonment of kenneth bae leaving bae's family back home shocked and disappointed. >> do you understand what kenneth bay did? >> what did he do? you tell me. >> no, no, no, you tell me. you tell me. why is he held captive. >> but now rodman is back peddleing saying, i want to first apologize token net bae's family, i also want to apologize to chris cuomo. i embarrassed a lot of people. i'm very sorry. at this point i should know better than to make political statements. i'm truly sorry. also appearing to have regrets, former nba star charles smith. he says he now questions whether they did the right thing going to north korea. perhaps in a birthday gift to

kim, rodman lost along with his team to a former korean team. the machine has portrayed his visit as paying tribute to north korea and its leader. the state department tells us they're working diplomatic channels tli china and sweden. there was also a direct line of communication to north career ya and they're trying to get their enjoy into north korea to get bae out. >> so first, the silly part. jim, why didn't you read the apology in the voice rodman was using? >> well, because i wasn't drinking before i did it. >> well, we can fix that. >> that's the silly part. rodman owes me no apology. there's nothing between the two of us, but the questions were legitimate. it is important he apologize to

the bae family. why there have been allegations and charges, there's been no proof of them. over a year, it's the longest period of detention for any american anywhere in the world. it matters. that's where we want the focus to be. the state department picking up their efforts would be great because there's a lot in that country that needs to be addressed. >> and you talked to his sister, terri chung about all this. >> yes. so we're going to have heather robinson, she is the wife of cliff robinson. we do want her insight into why her husband went there to play the game, what were the circumstances, because they are getting a lot of heat. let's get a look at your headlines. in the meantime, it is quarter after the hour. military authorities are still searching for a admitsing sailor

off the coast of virginia. two crew members died, four others were pulled out of the water. this comes just a day after four u.s. air force personnel were killed when their chopper crashed off the coast of england. more meetings for president obama today. people say obama will tighten restrictions for spying on foreign leaders and considering changes in access to american's phone records. he has also invited the german chancellor to washington in the coming months. the first case of the h 5 n 1 avian flu has been identified. she recently returned from a trip to china. canada's health minister says it is an isolated case and that the risk to the general public is very low since there's no evidence of sustained human to

human transmission. all eyes on harry reid to see if he forces a critical vote. it's not clear whether he has enough suppose -- support. check this out, a massive slow lar flare forces a delay for cargo delivery to the spaceation. that came from a sun spot 7 times the size of the earth. they were concerned the solar radiation from the flare would interfere with critical systems on its rocket. oh, those international issues when you think about that outside. when you think about the size of it. seven times the size of the earth. that is going to affect things. >> something that also affected things, the weather.

there's only one person who can take on this all. who can take on the polar vortex? that would be indra petersons. >> also i'm going to give you assigns lesson in the next hour. finally i am not saying cooling down. today, we are rebounding. you can actually see down in the south temperatures where they should be. to the north are the areas retreating to the north, we're still slightly below normal. by tomorrow, this quickly changes. pretty much everyone is above normal. minneapolis 12 degrees above normal tomorrow. look at the weekend. by saturday, notice the east coast expecting temperatures a good 20 degrees above normal. we said there was recovery in sight, yeah, big time. today a little bit of icing around arkansas and moving in through tennessee, but quickly

fading. it's the system behind it that we're focusing on. the backside of that system that brought cold air, that's where the air comes from, from the south over the gulf. that means it's warm air. that is why we're warming up in combination with the low that's moving in. even though it's a cold front, we're seeing those winds come out of the south. but, of course, here comes the rain as well. by friday, chances for shower in the midwest. sunday, yeah a cold front, but about a 10-degree temperature drop. a little bit of icing because it's still kind of mild. second system, of course, will be bringing all rain. my science lesson is coming up next. that's all on solar flares. that is called a very good tease. coming up on "new day," we're going to talk to the wife of one of the former nba players that went to north korea with

dennis rodman. cliff robinson's wife heather will join us. police political revenge and new jersey governor chris christie. he's dealing with the immediate fallout right now. by could it also impact his chances in 2016. all of this in our political gut check. your eyes really are unique.

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net bae's family, his teammates, his management team, and even to us. they played a game in north korea yesterday and also he sang happy dit day to kim jong-un. one of the players who went to north korea this time is nba veteran cliff robinson. he's sitting there circled on your screen right there. his wife heather joins us now. thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> got to establish why the guys were there versus rodman. kenneth bae, he's been held there over a year. that's the longest any american's been held. what did your husband know going into this? >> well, he -- he didn't know

anything about kenneth bae. that was never a question that came up. i i didn't think 90% of us didn't know anything about kenneth bae. that was brought to the attention after through the media. >> would it have made a difference? absolutely. >> how so? >> i don't think that they would have wanted to go, you know, put themselves in a position to be under that kind of pressure. they're basketball players. he went for the love of basketball. he stuck to the mantra to bridge that cultural difference, he does these games ail over asia since he's retired. >> when this was in the offering, when dennis was saying come with me, there's money involved here also, right? >> these games, there's sponsorships that also cover them. i read that the sponsor that actually covered this trip

pulled out. so i'm not sure on the money that's going to be difvied out. >> so you wanted a payday which is not wrong, but it then becomes criticized when you decide to get a payday in a situation where you're going to be performing for this type of person. fair criticism? >> that's very fair criticism. and that probably goes for a lot of people. for cliff, he works with the retired players association that charles smith runs as the director of player relations. so these are some of the things that they have set up before like with malaysia trips and what not. this one they didn't set up. denn dennis's camp set this one up, so i don't know the le jits of the financial part of it. >> why when dennis rodman picks up the phone and says, hey, brother come with me, why would he respond to that kind of invitation to go when he knows

there's some kind of controversy? >> well, dennis had asked him three or four times. i don't think that cliff or anyone else thought it was going to come to fruition. and it happened so quick that when he did call and he said, no, this is happening, i really need you. this was like, okay -- >> why did the others want to go? >> cliff supports his fellow athletes and dennis's whole idea of -- of you know, going into north korea, who knows what motives he has, but he really believes, i think in his heart that he was doing something good here. and you know, his passion is behind that. >> do they know -- did cliff know to your knowledge whether this game was going to be a gift

to the ruler? >> no absolutely not. he did not know that. >> highway do you know that? >> i spoke with him prior to your interview. i think it was right before he came on and he asked me what was going on back here. and i said, well, there's a lot of scrutiny, there's a lot of negativity. and he said, i can imagine. i said, do you know what he's doing with this birthday thing, he said, no, absolutely not. >> have you talked to him? >> i was waiting for him to call before this interview. >> so the last call was before the interview with us? >> yeah, the melt down. >> they lost the game you know? >> well, i didn't think that they would win. >> they do want to come back home. so what do you think is fair? as we assess the situation, dennis makes his apology. do you believe that he did need to apologize to cliff and the other players?

>> absolutely. i feel that they were a bigger thing on a dennis agenda. they went with good intentions to, you know, help dennis in a way that dennis portrayed this to be a mission for betterment of the people. >> so cliff thought and others thought, we're going there to expose north koreans to other ideas. >> exactly. >> not go there to hang out with kim jong-un. >> absolutely not. >> and glorify him. >> absolutely not. >> was that naive of them. >> i would say it's very naive of them, but they're basketball players. they're not people that are exposed to this as far as the political side of things. i don't know if they read up on all these things. may play basketball. they love basketball. that's all they've known. i feel bad for them because they're going to come back, these guys, and have to face a

lot of these questions. >> a big part of the reason to do this interview is to distinguish what was going on with rodman or not going onto the other fellows there. often the smartest part of a man is his wife. were you concerned when he said i'm going with dennis rodman to north korea to play a basketball game? >> yes. i was very concerned. when i dropped him off at the airport, that's when i really got that sick feeling and i looked at him. and he goes, it will be okay. and i said, i hope so. that's when i drove away and kicked myself and -- i'm going to own this. i should have did my due diligence. i should have asked more questions and i should have, you know, saw who was in charge of the protocol, what mission they had. and i didn't. you know, that's my fault. i'll take that. >> and i'll take you at your word that they went there to help the people. wasn't about a payday or trying

to glorify dennis's friend. i appreciate the perspective. >> thank you. we'll find out more when they land. >> yes ft. >> km i hope is soon. >> so what do you think? it's an evolving discussion right. tweet us with the hash tag "new day." coming up next on "new day," murder on a pennsylvania highway. a man found shot and killed in his car after making a frantic 911 call. are more people in danger now? also, it's said that women make up half of the workforce, by get paid significantly less. now a released stud claims it's the women's fault. do you agree? so far away. i've been thinking about moving in with my daughter and her family. it's been pretty tough since jack passed away. it's a good thing you had life insurance through the colonial penn program. you're right. it was affordable,

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praek news coming in. new jersey governor chris christie will address the scandal surrounding the lane closures on the garage washington bridge. we're told he's going to speak at 11:00 a.m. eastern this morning. that's been a big question. he put out a paper statement, and now we learned he'll be speaking at 11:00 a.m. eastern. we're going to learn much more about what he knows and if and when they're going to be firings surrounding all of this. but let's take more about this -- take more about this whole scandal with peter ham by. peter, let's talk more about this. we know that chris christie -- everyone's going to be looking to see what chris christie says. i'm sure there's no reporting out on what he's going to say

because they just announced it, but is there already political fallout? >> i think it's still wait and see. there was a lot of judgment about how it's going to impact 2016, by it's still unfolding. i think that's why you haven't seen a lot of republican officials, his supporters in the party, come out to his defense, because they're still kind of waiting to see what's going to happen. we really don't know yet what he's going to say, but a lot of republicans that i spoke with yesterday said that this is something that he needs to do. yesterday was not typical christie. christie sort of hunkered down. his aides who are typically courteous to national media did not respond to e-mails and phone calls a lot yesterday. republicans say he needs to come out and he needs to be sincere and apologetic.

>> he's fatsing a -- facing a triple threat, right, peter? you have potential criminal investigative elements here. and then the third tier is being judged for the man he says he is. he's not an ordinary politician when it comes to candor and what he says himself about tells the truth when it matters. remember this sound. take a listen to this. >> here's what my suggestion would be to him. don't be so cute. and when you make a mistake, admit it. you know what, i said it, i was wrong, i'm sorry and we're going to try to fix this and make it better. i think people would give any leader in that circumstance a lot of credit for owning up to it. >> fair criticism that he has not followed his own advice or is it unfair criticism because he needed time to figure it out and now is his chance to show

his true colors? >> i think that today we're going to see him come out and be apologetic. there's really no other option for him today. he cannot be the typical blustering christie. the problem with this story, in isolation, perhaps politically you can make an argument that most republican voters don't even know what the george washington bridge is. the bigger problem, this feeds a narrative about christie that is preexisting, that he has big elbows, that he is, you know, pretty blunt and outspoken and also that he is a bipartisan leader. his aides and himself have cultivated this image of someone that can work across party lines. just before this broke, he was in union city about a bill. with this story we see that

perhaps he has create add culture where his aides are nakedly political and are willing to go after democrats. but again, we do not know if christie himself knew of this. he has denied that. >> and peter, you know -- you were there kind of reporting on the signing of that immigration bill. come wg that signing was more conversations of this is laying the groundwork for his presidential run. it is months away before anyone will be announcing they are running in 2016. do you think that is the only silver lining for him here, that there is months for this to fall away from the headlines depending on the outcome here, or do you think it's almost certain something this big will follow him? >> i think it's good that it's early. the immigration bill, a lot of republicans don't like the immigration bill. so the republicans that i talked to in the early states, they said it's good for him to get

this kind of thing out of the way early so he doesn't have to answer to it closer to the possible campaign. yeah, this is probably good that this is getting out there early. how many people, how many voters, how many national voters are actually paying granular level attention to this. i was looking at twitter last night, and a member of the obama campaign tweeted at me and said how many voters knew about bane capital before the campaign started running tv ads about it. so this is something that democrats are absolutely going to want to use against him. gen, to undercut that image of him as a bipartisan figure and to actually reenforce an image of him as a bully, which a lot of democrats say he is. >> and the immanual that would linger for the national republican party at large as they're trying to rebrand in

2014. so a lot to discuss. peter, thank you very much for that. just a programming note, cnn will be carrying governor christie's press conference at 11:00 a.m. you want to stick here for that for sure. cnn can now confirm that 29-year-old shezanne cassim has left the uae and is flying home to the u.s. he is traveling with his father. shez left dubai early this morning. he is expected to arrive in minneapolis later today. he was arrested for making a parody view. a second sailor now died after a navy helicopter crashed off the virginia coast about 20 miles east of cape henry in southern virginia. a frantic search is underway at this hour. two others were rescuesed.

they're said to be in stable condition at the hospital. new developments for you in the jahi macmath case. the attorney said she is improving and said she should have gotten treatment four weeks ago. she went into cardiac arrest after a tonsillectomy. the u.s. for rest service is billing a wisconsin man $6.3 million for the cost of fighting a wildfire that threatened an entire town back in 2012. the 77-year-old allegedly sparked the fire by letting twigs and paper in a rusted out barrel get out of control. oh, look at that. video from the toronto zoo. a male polar bear cub that is

two months old today manages to get up on all fours temporarily. >> looks like us every morning before caffeine. >> he weighs more than six times what he did at birth. yes, it's cute, but i agree, this is the last time this will be cute and custodily. because that right there is a predator of man. >> polar bear is the largest bear. when it looks at you it sees one thing, food. >> right there. >> he's waving. >> cute alert. thank you. >> somebody will make the gross mistake of taking one as a pet. and we know how that ends. coming up on "new day," a terrifying scenario we want to show you. driver shot to death just after he called 911 to say he was being chased. it may not have been a random

act of road rage. the question, are more people in danger. and also the highest paid. for my unemployment to end now, i wouldn't have money to go on an interview. my retirement is going away as a result of this. i do have a husband, thank god, or i would be homeless. tell republicans: restore unemployment benefits now. abreva can heal a cold sore in as few as 2 1/2 days when used at the first sign. without it, the virus spreads from cell to cell. unlike other treatments, abreva penetrates deep to block the virus, to protect healthy cells so cold sores heal fast. as fast as 2 1/2 days when used at the first sign. ♪ learn more at abreva.com. don't tough it out. knock it out! fast. [ female announcer ] only with abreva.

welcome back this morning. police are on the hunt for a money man who killed a man on a pennsylvania interstate and may strike again. timothy davis son was found in his car shot multiple times. at first, police expected road

rage. we have more. >> timothy davis son made his first 911 call along interstate 81 to maryland dispatchers at 2:30 a.m. saturday morning. he said he was being chased. he called again as he was driving northbound on the interstate back home from florida to maine in his silver admits beshi after visiting family for the holidays. he was found in his car with multiple gunshot wounds including one to the head and later pronounced dead at a local hospital. police tell cnn the victim says on 911 calls he is being chased by a vehicle and that the driver is very aggress si. the shooter is still at large. law enforcement believes the shooting was not random. eight hours earlier, another driver was allegedly shot at from a black pickup.

the location, just 30 minutes away from the fatal crime scene. >> due to the fact that we've had a similar case with the same mode of operation, we are concerned that this individual could strike again. >> police think silver paint from the victim's car transferred onto the driver's side of the suspects damaged truck, potential evidence left behind when the suv was rammed off the road. they are asking the public to be on the lookout for the vehicle. >> he was always up beat and friendly and nice. >> davisson's father tells cnn timothy was a great guy and an easy kid to raise, he was a rugged kid, extremely sensitive. davis son's uncle tells cnn the family wants justice before someone else gets hurt. cnn, new york. >> all right. thank you so much for that. let's get another check of

the weather. we bring in indra petersons with the good stuff. >> we're talking about temperatures warming up significantly. minneapolis, 4 degrees yesterday. all of this is changing by the time we go to the weekend. look at the difference. the highs will be above normal by about 20 degrees. new york city, you're talking about 50s. loving this in january. today we're seeing it retreat out of the southeast first. of course, towards the poles, you're still a little bit below normal. keep in mind though although it is warm there is still some rain in the system. keep in mind the pacific northwest, good 5 inches of rain expected in that region. a little payback for all the hazing i've had around here. notice there is an anchor desk

in cleveland, ohio. it was the -- it was the anchors outside. so next time we are in 30 below guys, that's for you. >> do i need to bring the video of friday while you two were away and you were in the field? >> yeah, thank you very much. you and i are good. >> not a competition. not a competition. >> to the extent that it is, yes, i did see you outside. i happen to have done on my first assignment at cnn, a business sard ---ably sdard. >> during my vacation i chose to go skiing which put me in very cold weather. >> going to a lodge, and having coffee, i don't think so. >> i'm not going to wear all 19 layers that you have on with those goofy boots. >> i actually was going to ask

about that. met. it's >> we are going to take a break here. coming up are women competitive enough in the workplace? a new study is suggesting why women earn less than men. [bell rings] [prof. burke] at farmers,we believe what you don't know can hurt you. like what if you didn't know to get coverage for uninsured drivers? [robot] uh oh. [prof. burke] talk to farmers and get smarter about your insurance. ♪ we are farmers bum - pa - dum, bum - bum - bum - bum♪

welcome back. the year 2014, sobering here. women are still earning 80 cents for every dollar man makes. a new study out of columbia university may offer key insight into why the gender pay gap still exists. we put christine romans on the topic. it is really surprising and i want you to tell people what

this paper is about. >> it was so interesting it was presented at a big conference friday. let me give what you the money line is in this study. they found that individuals who are overconfident and overly competitive have significantly higher earnings expectations. they also found confidence and competitive must and negotiation were the three things that make up for a big chunk of why there is a difference between how women and men earn money. there has been so much done on this. this is the latest big research. it does show women have -- we asked young women how much you expect to earn. they will give you a number. you ask men how much they expect to earn, they will give you a higher number. >> if you look at the paper, it also talks about choices made in college. about the course of study. >> right. confidence, aggressiveness, ability to negotiate, men are more likely to go into things like business and finance. women more likely to go into things like the humanities. it is choice of college major. a lot of other studies have shown this, too, even when you

adjust for choice of college major, men and women in the same job and same major are even making different money. it has been confounding to economists that try to figure out why is there this difference and how you fix. >> it while it is a little bit circular, what does this say, this study in terms of whether or not this is being done to you or you are doing it to yourself? >> they don't make that -- like it is your fault, women. it is your fault because you don't negotiate well. we know that in the workplace if you are confident or -- overly confident, you are a woman, sometimes there is a "b" word associated with that. it is not being aggressive and go-getter. it is being something else. so women -- also women in some industries, in particular, don't have role models ahead of them who have done this. >> mentor. >> mentors. sponsors. like to talk about sponsors. a mentor is somebody who you can look up to but a sponsor is someone that pulls up with them. as more women get into the work force and rise up the ladder, you know, it is interesting. cheryl sandberg, quoting "fortune" editor, patty sellers,

said men hi of their career as a ladder, up, up, up. women succeed by thinking of it as jungle gym. moving laterally and moving up and learning more skills, broadening out their base of people who are their sponsors and mentors. moving sideways when you have to because you are sbrag by. moving up again after that. women should think differently about how they rise through the ladder than men do. that's interesting, the ladder versus the jungle gym. >> it is. i hope a contrary note is women don't think they just have to suddenly having to act like men. we can stay in our gender but do it better. >> well said. >> it was bumpy. thank you so much. appreciate it. we are going to take a break. coming up next, big political news we are polling. governor chris christie planning to address this growing traffic scandal this morning. what will he say? will there be an apology? will there be firings? we will find out. senator more company rubio will join us to talk about the republican war on poverty.

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it is a sad day for new jersey. this governor has a lot of explaining to do. >> new this morning, chris christie under fire. hearings today over allegations he choked traffic to one city as political payback. new reports that lives may have been put at risk. can he survive the scandal? dennis rodman says he's sorry. sorry to the family of kenneth bay and sorry to our own chris cuomo. what he is blaming for his outburst. also, new video of rodman with

north korea's leader. the reality show stars join us exclusively. their court case defending their polygamist way of life could go to the supreme court. they just won one victory. will they change the law of the land? >> your new day continues right now. >> this is "new day". good morning. breaking news there. 8:00 in the east. breaking news this morning. new jersey governor chris christie will address the growing bridge scandal this morning at 11:00. 11:00 news conference. 11:00 eastern. you don't want to miss that. his top aides are accused of punishing the mayor for not supporting christie's re-election bid. christie says he knew nothing about it. just earlier on "new day," one of christie's rivalries said he's -- he will formally request an investigation around all of

this. what could it men for christie's presidential aspirations? well, take a look at this. the new york daily news, they always have a good headline. this is what they said about the presumed presidential election front-runner, "fat chance now." joe johns is following the development this morning live in washington. joe, what's the latest? >> the trouble for the christie administration starts with calls for some type of state or federal investigation. then will are the hearings. plus there are questions already being asked about the scandal on capitol hill. on top of all of that, the governor is going to have to answer questions about abuse of power and political retribution. this morning, the pressure is mounting. >> that's not the kind of leadership that new jersey needs and it is certainly not the kind of leadership the nation needs. >> reporter: the new jersey bridge e-mails igniting a full-blown scandal with increasing calls for a federal investigation.

>> there's morning enough evidence to warrant an investigation to determine what, you know, what we immediate to know what this governor knew and when he knew it oyp now this. new revelation it is christie aides may have put lives in danger. with ems crews unable to reach people in need of emergency care. wednesday afternoon, christie leased a written statement. he did not apologize but blamed the problems on his staff. i am outraged and deeply saddened to learn that not only was i misled by a member of my staff but this completely inappropriate and unsanctioned conduct was made without my knowledge. his administration is accused of shutting down several lanes of the george washington bridge for four days in september, causing major traffic problems in the town of fort lee. the mayor of that town refused to endorse christie. at the time christie's office denied any political revenge and blamed the bridge snarl on a traffic study. >> you are really not serious

with that question. >> reporter: cnn obtained texts and e-mails that say prove otherwise. time for traffic problems in fort lee. that e-mail was sent august 13 from the account of bridget anne kelly to david wildstein. got it, he replied. when the mayor of fort lee called about the gridlock, kelly then e-mailed wildstein to find out if anyone had called him back. radio silence was the response. christie's critics are questioning whether he was truly ignorant of the communications of his staff. they want an investigation. >> his statements and actions thus far have proven that he's not a straight shoot ier that he claimed to be and the questions require answers. he needs to step up and face the music and answer those questions. >> reporter: even though the governor says he doesn't know about what happened here, it creates a whole second set of

questions. that's why he didn't know what was going on if his own office. he says he was misled by a member of the staff. the e-mails seem to suggest that others, including people at the port authority, may have had knowledge of what was going on. >> all right. new jersey lawmakers trying to get to the bottom of this. a former christie aide who resigned last month will testify at a hearing on this mushrooming political scandal over the bridge closures. we are live in trenton. this situation now that you have the implication about ems delays and whether a life could have been saved otherwise, this is month longer about politics and no longer about just the chris christie. >> reporter: it is very big. let's talk a little bit more about david wildstein. he was a high school friend of chris christie's. chris christie appointed him to be the number two ranking official at the port authority. that's the body that oversees

transit between new jersey and new york. dating back to 2010, the mayor of fort lee was complaining about traffic problems. and david wild stein was going to commission some sort of study. that's why it is so puzzling why he would decide to close some of the access lanes to the bridge and then not tell the fort lee officials about it who then complained in september when had closed hose access lanes. as you mentioned, david wildstein resigned in december but he is testifying here today at noon. of course, now we know chris christie will be holding a press conference just an hour before. will he throw his old friend under the bus? we will have to see. but david wildstein's attorney just earlier this week filed a motion to get him out of this hearing today. but he's -- he will be here at moon and we will have to hear what he has to say to answer some of these questions. >> it is not a small situation anymore. i think nobody is going to avoid that type of scrutiny.

thank you for the perspective. we will speak with marco rubio and have a political panel here made up of cnn all-stars to figure out what this could mean. the implications are getting frighteningly large for the new jersey governor. dennis rodman blaming stress and drinking for his ainge rip rant earlier this week right here on "new day." a newly released statement the nba star apologizing for his meltdown. after -- some say rodman should be apologizing once again. good morning, jim. >> good morning. he is running away from his comments and not running away from north korea. reports this morning that dennis rodman is on his way to a new multimillion dollar ski resort in north korea. pet project of leader kim jong-un. he is apologizing for some of his behavior. his publicist september cnn his statement where he blames stress for his bizarre outburst and his alarming comments about american captive kenneth bae.

overnight former nba player dennis rodman admitted in a statement to cnn he was out of bounds. i want to apologize. take full responsibility for my actions. it had been a very stressful day. some of my teammates are were leaving because of pressure of their families and business associates. my dreams of diplomacy were quickly falling apart. rodman's apology comes in the wake of a wild week. playing exhibition basketball in north korea where he exploded in an interwith cnn's chris cuomo. >> [ bleep ] what the hell you think. eye saying, look at these guys! look at them! >> reporter: rodman explains his outburst. i had been drinking. not an excuse but by the time the interview happened i was upset and i was overwhelmed. it is not an excuse. it's just what happened. >> ♪ happy birthday to you

>> reporter: singing happy birthday to leader kim jong-un and giving him a bow. >> to you, sir. let me know. >> reporter: rodman spark ad firestorm with justification that the imprisonment of kenneth bae with chris cuomo. leaving bae's family shocked and disappointed. >> do you understand what he did? >> what did he do? you tell me, what did he do? >> no, no, no, no, you tell me why he is held captive. >> rodman is back pedaling saying i want to first apologize to kenneth bae's family and apologize to my team mates and management team. i also want to apologize to chris cuomo. i embarrassed a lot of people. i'm very sorry. at this point i should know better than to make political statements. i'm truly sorry. also appearing to have regrets, one of rodman's teammates for nba's star charles smith. he says he now questions whether

they did the right thing going to north korea. perhaps in a birthday gift to kim, rodman lost along with his team of former nba stars to the north korea national team. hair loss, another apparent victory for north korea's gargantuan propaganda machine which portrayed his visit as paying tribute to north korea and its leader. >> the u.s. is working very hard to get kenneth bae out of north korea. really we get a sense of rodman and other players wading into a mine peeled here. the propaganda victory for the government, the comments about kenneth bae and there are real concerns from u.s. officials about stability in north korea. real questions about whether they are doing more harm there than good. >> yes. so many issues there. thanks so much. await the fate of kenneth bae. we can tell you an american previously held in dubai is flying home at this hour after being held almost a year in the

united arab emirates. shezanne cassim, his family is being relieved. cas si m is expected to arrive in minneapolis later today. new developments in a navy helicopter crash off of virginia's southern coast. ing a second sailor has now died. two others were rescued. they are said to be in stable condition. the search meanwhile is on. a plan particular search in that ice cold water for a fifth sailor who was onboard that helicopter. president obama meeting with congressional leaders today to talk about reforming the nsa. according to sources, the president is ring limiting the spy agency's access to phone records of u.s. citizens and is expected to tighten restrictions on spying on foreign leaders. one of those foreign leaders was targeted, german chancellor america i will. he has been invite bid the president to visit the white house whenever she can clear her schedule. hundreds of same-sex

marriages will not be recognized by the state of utah. while the matter is debated in the courts the supreme court issued an injunction stopping new marriages after they were allowed recently by a federal judge that said it was not constitution alto ban them. oral arguments are expected in the next few months. check out crazy video from ireland. where the coastline is turned into a surfer's paradise. it has stirred up huge waves. 20 to 30 feet high. 20-feet wide. surfers are apparently flocking to the area to try to take those waves on. you know will will be a lot of video there. >> it is absolutely right. incredible. >> i don't know how they do. >> it i don't know either. my family surfs. may wife and the kids surf. i took a lesson. >> not so good at it. >> i don't know how these guys do it. speaking of averages, let's talk about average temperatures. they are going up. it looks like we don't have to use the phrase polar vortex much

longer. andrea is tracking it all as usual. using our favorite met here on -- look at the lingo i passed on. i want to show you where the waves came from, ireland. this is the system that was here around new year's. you can actually see those waves or system moving all the way across the atlantic. that's low pressure that's bringing themming the high waves today. good news. looks like that energy will die down thanks to us having the high pressure, the polar vortex. cold air moving over there and things should calm down for them over the next several days. their weather pat seven changing. our weather pattern is changing. our temperatures are going up. you can actually see that cold air retreating back to the poles. still below normal the farther north you are. from here on it gets better. the warm air is making its way farther to the north and temperatures will start to go from not only average but to above normal for this time of year. what a gift after last week. notice d.c. looking for temperatures a good 20 degrees

above normal by saturday. in the 60s for january. it is warmer but does not mean we do not have any rain. we are talking about a low-pressure system around arkansas and tennessee. not going to be a big deal. icing this morning. dissipates quickly. it is a system behind it that we will be watching, bringing showers in the midwest by provide and makes its way over to the northeast by the weekend. key point being it is warmer, warmer, and then again, warmer. >> that's all i heard. that's all i heard was warmer. >> we need a coffee break. we are going to take a break here. coming up, republicans are looking to make poverty a central issue as the battle over unemployment benefits continues. florida senator marco rubio joining us live to talk about that and much more. >> republicans have more to worry about than just poverty today. they have to deal with the chris christie scandal. the big question, did staffers freelance political reprisal or

did the governor know? how severe will the implications be politically, even perhaps criminally? analysis ahead. unreliable companies. angie's list definitely saves me time and money. for over 18 years we've helped people take care of the things that matter most. join today.

. welcome back. cody brown and his family, best known for "sister wives" on tlc, won a major legal victory in utah last month. a federal judge threw out the section of the state's ban on polygamy that prohibits co-habitation. but now that ruling is under siege. the browns are joining us exclusively here on "new day." first, sheer look at their story and their legal battle. >> to be here all together, if we weren't committed, we know the commitment is already there.

>> millions watched cody brown and his super-sized polygamist family on tlc's reality show "sister wives." one husbands, four wives and 17 children living as one family. >> all the suitcases. >> reporter: in 2011 the family fled from it tout nevada after prosecution said an investigation into their lifestyle was launched. >> here in las vegas our family culture has been crumbling. >> reporter: month charges were ever brought against them but brown sued the state of utah claiming his family's privacy rights were violated by a law banning co-habitation. then in december, a major victory for the browns. a practical judge overturned part of the decades' old anti-polygamy statute saying it did violate first-amendment rights. >> the idea here is that co-habitation between as many people that want to live together is beyond sort of the purview of the government.

they can't outlaw that. >> reporter: the ruling did keep some limitations on polygamy. multiple adults can now live together without fear of prosecution. but husbands or wives still cannot seek more than one marriage license. >> happy birthday! >> reporter: the browns may not yet be totally free to live the lifestyle they have chosen. incomi incoming -- attorney general. if this opinion is overturned on appeal, then any co-habitation can phonily be unlawful and can phonily be prosecuted under utah law as it exists. >> joining me for an exclusive interview is the cast of "sister wives." cody brown and his wives. thank you for joining us. ladies, help me out. will you just let us know who is whom here. say names to get us started.

>> i'm robin. >> i'm christine. >> i'm janelle. >> i'm mary. >> thank you very much. you in the middle, sir, i guess you would be cody. >> i'm cody. >> all right. cody, i will start with you. let's put your particular situation aside just for a moment. do you understand why utah and every other state would have concerns about polygamy and allowing it to exist without any kind of control? >> no. wry understand that. >> ultimate -- >> please, go ahead. >> ultimately we really just want to be a family. we just wanted to choose who we make our life with and who we raise our kids with. >> you are all adults and you know what happen medical the past. the dark and ugly past of polygamy. rung women being exploited. right? not being able to control their own fates. where there's almost a cultish-like addiction to this family structure. those are the concerns that fuel the prohibition. >> no.

the prohibition actually happened before that was actually happening. the issue with the child brides, if you will, that is a new thing basically but on by the dangers of prosecution. warren jeff never would have been able to control his people without them living in the fear and oppression of the government. he would never have been to be able rise to power. >> we decided to go public because there were so many things out there that were a part of our life. when we were adults we chose to be in this life and chose to marry cody. we fell in love as adults and want that known and want people the see that. that's why we went public because there are a lot of stories out there that are horrible, terrifying. but we are not that. we wanted to show that. >> what happens is that these people and these communities are more afraid of the law breaking of their families than they are of the perpetrate wror actually, you know, abusing them.

this is why it creates a future abuse. >> i take your point, cody, when you make something wrong, it then can allow to it fester in a way because you don't see what's going on. i get that. do you also recognize that we do have to do something to ensure that young and vulnerable women aren't put in compromised situations where -- >> absolutely. >> yes, we absolutely agree with that. >> that community has gotten so much control from the top down. there is no liberty in that community. that's not us. that's not our issue. we are seeking our rights as a family because everybody here does have liberty. >> now legally -- >> seeking libber. >> i i spoke to your attorney before. as you know, i'm an attorney myself. legally you created an interesting space for yourself. you are not asking do have a state-validated marriage license with each of the women around you. just want the right to live together almost as like a roommate exception. i know you don't consider yourselves roommates.

that's what you are asking. it makes a big difference legally. >> from the legal perspective, yes. we are looking at ourselves and chosen to be a family. we organized our family as we -- >> according to our religious beliefs. >> according to our religious beliefs. there were never any child brides here. this is not part of the society that i am part of. however -- >> this is what our church practices. there are no child brides. there's not arranged marriages. the abuses are not part of our church. >> we simply sought the right to be able to be a family according to our religious beliefs. >> no legal -- >> we are not seeking legal -- what would you call it? legal -- legal recognition or legal validation. >> when you say your religious beliefs, obviously the mainstream mormon churched moved away from polygamy, bigamy, multiple marriages. >> 120 years ago. >> why is it so important to your religious belief -- why is

polygamy what's central to your religious beliefs? >> it is not central to our religious belief. we just simply wanted the opportunity to be able to choose who we organized our family with. it is as simple as that. >> it is not our central religious belief. it is just -- the most different from everybody else and so they want to talk about it. >> why do you think it works better than just having one spouse? >> you know what -- >> we are saying that our family just wanted this. i'm not sheg to whether -- >> sorry. i think it works better. >> i want to say it does. for raising kids for sure among other things. >> it is all a personal preference. we decided in our family we want to set up our family. it is not necessarily better for everyone. it is what's better for us. it is what we chose as a familiar. >> you are not saying it is for everybody. you should have the right to live as you want as long as you are free and consenting adult. >> exactly.

>> you are not under the -- you are not under persuasive influence. >> nobody forced us to marry cody. we all chose this. we all wanted to. >> one thing, we raised our children to be opinionated and have a voice. we want our children to have the right to choose their living arrangements, too, when the time comes. when the time comes, when they are 25. >> graduate from college. >> all right. we have to see what happens next. you know the attorney general, he wants to appeal it because he wants to keep the law intact. that would mean if that happens, you would then have to find a state that's friendly to you which you have right now. are you worried about the legal implications? are you going to go with it whichever way it turns out? >> professor turley -- we very much respect and trust our legal counsel. you know, we are -- you know, we are out of -- i don't even know

how to speak to the legal. just -- we just are -- are hopeful that we are so grateful for what our judge -- is able to do. we are humbled by it, completely humbled by it. we are sitting here in nevada feeling safe and that's great. in utah we didn't. we left there under duress. >> under extreme circumstance. >> exactly. >> that was very difficult experience. we ended up having -- basically being exiled from our home. >> exactly. we will do whatever we immediate to do but we are just -- we are just grateful for, you know, what is going on right now. >> we will be polling the situation. thank you for coming on to tell your side of this story. it it has as if mated many of us. >> thanks for having us. >> we will speak again when it gets resolved.

>> thank you. coming up next on "new day," republicans are looking to fight poverty as the battle over unemployment benefits continues on capitol hill. practice senator marco rubio is joining us live in just a moment to talk about it. hey guys! sorry we're late. did you run into traffic? no, just had to stop by the house to grab a few things. you stopped by the house? uh-huh. yea. alright, whenever you get your stuff, run upstairs, get cleaned up for dinner. you leave the house in good shape? yea. yea, of course. ♪ [ sportscaster talking on tv ] last-second field go-- yea, sure ya did. [ male announcer ] introducing at&t digital life. personalized home security and automation. get professionally monitored security for just $29.99 a month. with limited availability in select markets. ♪ with limited availability in select markets. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. everybody knows that parker. well, did you know auctioneers make bad grocery store clerks? that'll be $23.50.

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welcome back to "new day." we turn to another leader of the republican party making headlines this morning. senator marco rubio joining several other prominent republicans speaking out with proposals to fight poverty. remarks yesterday he claimed he said america is not the land of

opportunity for all. what is he going to do about it? the floor senator marco rubio is joining with us much more to talk about this. senator, you really are proposing quite an overhaul. a major overhaul of anti-poverty programs. the biggest in 50 years p part of it you want to turn many anti-poverty programs, take them from the federal government, and turn them over to the states. how is that going to bring people out of poverty? how will that help people? >> we have to understand that right now our current programs, what they do is they help people alleviating the symptoms of poverty. pain caused by poverty. that's important. then don't help people emerge from poverty. the structural causes of poverty are complex and social, economic, they are -- they are complex and overlapping. we have to address those things. i do not believe, in fact, now that washington and its one-size-fits-all approach is not conducive to finding the innovative solutions it will take to deal with the complex underlying causes of poverty. however, it would take all the money that we spend now on

federal poverty programs, put them into one federal agency, and then use that agency to transfer that money to states who are pursuing innovative programs to address things like hunger but also education and career training and combination with each other. i think that's where you are going on get better results and the model for that we see already in reforms that states have made on unemployment benefits which have been successful, and we saw tonight the '90s in welfare reform that put more power in the hands of the states to find innovations to get people back to work. >> i do want to ask you about unemployment been and how that plays into this. you well know that -- while everyone should be trying to find a way to help more americans come out of poverty and to fight poverty, democrats are already jumping all over your speech saying that it is empty rhetoric because so many republicans -- while you say this on one side, you are also not supporting an extension of long-term unbloynlt fits that's before congress at this very moment. >> right. >> why don't you -- why won't

you support the three-month extension that's in the senate -- that's working its way through the senate now? >> first of all, do i support the three-month extension. i ask that we find all -- some waste in government and it is not going to be hard to do to find some money to pay for it. so we don't add to the debt. >> wear do you think -- i mean, when we are talking about $6.4 million, sadly that's not a lot of money. where is the money? >> everywhere. there are proposals you can find program -- there's cuts in the defense industry that we can find that money from. there is a proposal from kelly ayotte to go after the fraud that exists in the earned income tax credit that would month more than pay for that. senator portman has proposals. senator reid is not allowing any votes to take place. they won't allow us to vote that. let me go dwloond for second because i think their criticism and focus on unemployment benefits as way to tackle poverty sin dicktive of the flaw in their thinking. the problem is long-term unemployment. unemployment check allows to you pay the bills and that's

important. but the only way to solve unemployment is employment. our current unemployment program nothing, nothing, to help people find a job and get employed. you know what states have done? states have taken people on long-term unsxloymt septembempl them in courses that i am proved their ability to improve job skills and finding dramatic results in helping people get out of long-term unemployment. why aren't we doing that or empowering states to do that? not just sending a check. that's the democrats' answer to everything and it shows you why after 50 years we still have 49 million people living in poverty. >> will you quick address the fact that in both sides are doing it right now, entering an election we are and all of a sudden everyone wants to talk about how to help bring more americans out of poverty. answer to the criticism from democrats, republicans are just doing this to rye to help their brand in an election year. >> well, i have been talking about had since 2005 when i was in the state legislature. i was is the speaking of the house and many of the ideas on

the book that i produced called the 100 innovative ideas for florida's future, dealing with this very topic of upward mobility. i ran on upward mobility. i'm a generation removed from poverty myself. my parents came to had country. they were very poor and had to work their way up into the middle class. thank god they were able to do that because i can't imagine what my life would have been like had they not had that opportunity. gist want other people to have the same opportunity and for me, i have been dealing with this for ten years. i don't know who they are talking about. but it isn't me. >> the fight over unemployment as well as the fight against poverty will continue on capitol hill. we will follow the proposals you are pushing closely. there are problems on capitol hill. there always are. there are also other problems i have to ask you about. i have to ask you about the exploding political story surrounding governor chris christie of new jersey. if it is true that his aides tied up traffic as part of a political vendetta, wear waiting to hear more from what he says today, what should the governor do? would this rise to the level

that he should resign? >> i understand this is a big story nationally. but i don't know anything about it other than a couple of articles i have seen headlines on. i would -- i just don't think it is fair for me to comment on something i have no involvement in and i haven't talked with governor christie. i think what we should do -- for those of us watching -- allow the possible necessary new jersey to move forward. i understand the legislature is looking at it. i'm not going to comment on something i don't know anything about. >> do you think that when -- there is a lot of reporting out there -- i am hearing quietly the republicans are very nervous about this political fair storm that the governor is facing -- do you think there should be a federal investigation? >> i think that's just political speculation. obviously people that cover politics for a live ring always looking for something to drive the next news cycle. i'm sayi ing i don't know anythg about it. >> this is not just about the governor's state. he's stepping into a very important role right now as chairman of the republican

governor's association. that is important to every republican across the country. that's a very important powerful fund-raising position. does this hurt -- have the potential to hurt the republican party? >> again, i don't know and i haven't spent any time thinking about it. i think we should let this thing play forward. i think it would be fair to all sides to allow to it play forward. i think that's the right approach. to be prudent here and not jump to conclusions. i don't know anything about this. for me to comment beyond that would just not be, you know, appropriate. >> we do know you have a lot of work ahead of you on capitol hill. i appreciate your time for coming in this morning. senator marco rubio, we will talk to you very soon. >> thank you. >> thank you so much. chris, back to you. >> coming up on "new day," governor christie set to address his political scandal this morning. will the man who said he is responsible for all new jerseyans own this scandal or deflect? a panel of those that know analyzing this is a passing blemish or is chris christie in the fight for his political life? yeah, i'm married. does it matter?

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welcome back to "new day." here are five things you immediate to know for your new day. dennis rodman admitting he was out of bounds. the former nba star apologizing for his outburst during an interview on "news day grts north korea. he blames it all on stress and alcohol. breaking news. the american jailed is on his way home. shezanne cassim is expected home today. >> republicans demanding senator reid come up with a way to pay for the $6.4 billion dollar plan. considering limits on domestic phone surveillance operations and spying on foreign leaders. number five, sandra bullock

beating up at the people's choice awards, winning four awards. favorite movie actress, favorite dramatic actress and best movie duo with "gravity" co-star george clooney. promise to come back and tell us about these super cool solar -- >> yes. >> so -- >> science club. show the video. let's take a look at the video first. solar flare that happened two days ago but the effects will be happening today. we will show you the basics first. let's talk about what is a sun spot. sun spots, that's a large area of magnetic activity on the sun. we got this. now there's an inbalance and get something called a solar flare. when you look at this corner here, that's like billions of particles of radiation. scary word. coming towards the earth. takes two days. that was two days ago. today is the lucky day. today and tomorrow we are dealing with this. most important thing to know, it

does not affect the humans. love those cell phones. gps apps. they affect that. we will be talking about airline routes. they don't want chin and indications affected. the planes will be flying lower the next several day. they are worried about that. delivery though the space station, not going for this reason. you can see it. that was cool. the farther north you are, seattle, chicago, boston, you do have the chance to see it from this. most important thing, it does not peak -- >> figuring out what causes the imbalance. >> electro magnetic activity and balance. i can't seen say these words. electromagnetic field. >> sounds great, though. >> like the rest of us, you know what they mean. >> thanks. >> sure thing. >> let's take a break. coming up next, new jersey governor wrapped up a scandal -- wrapped up in a scandal involving political payback.

how damaging is this for the republican party's front runner for 2016? we will tackle chris christie's future with our political than panel of cnn all-stars. had to y the house to grab a few things. you stopped by the house? uh-huh. yea. alright, whenever you get your stuff, run upstairs, get cleaned up for dinner. you leave the house in good shape? yea. yea, of course. ♪ [ sportscaster talking on tv ] last-second field go-- yea, sure ya did. [ male announcer ] introducing at&t digital life. personalized home security and automation. get professionally monitored security for just $29.99 a month. with limited availability in select markets. ♪ i've quit for 75 days. 15 days, but not in a row. for the first time, you can use nicorette... even if you slip up... so you can reach your goal. [ male announcer ] now, quit on your own terms with nicorette or nicoderm cq.

i losi'm a year short ofbably qualifying for my retirement.. they had some cutbacks. i was the most skilled technician and also the highest paid. for my unemployment to end now, i wouldn't have money to go on an interview. my retirement is going away as a result of this. i do have a husband, thank god, or i would be homeless. tell republicans: restore unemployment benefits now.

righyou did a great job. ing 4 times it looks good!ints... ♪ ...no wonder he's fueling up. enjoy our free hot breakfast options and up to 4 times the hhonors points on your next stay. feel the hamptonality welcome back. crunch time for chris christie. a little more than two hours, new jersey's governor will address the growing bridge scandal surrounding him this morning. earlier here on the show, a state senator announced he's formally requesting a federal

investigation into christie's administration. scary words. here's the big question politically. is this the end of chris christie's presidential aspirations? or even potentially his governorship? here to break it down senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin. as well as cnn political commentate wror and republican strategist kevin madden. cnn's chief congressional correspondent dana bash. thanks to all of you. let me begin with you, mr. toobin, because you are closest to me. if we look at this, make the case for how you get to the worst-case scenario for chris christie, these e. names came out, just the staffers talking, it seems to be political retribution, they closed the lanes to punish the mayor who didn't like the governor, how do we get from there to where governor christie is at real risk? if. >> if he is found through e-mail, through testimony to have authorized to endorse, to have ordered this closure as

political retribution, i don't know if he will finish his term as governor. i think that's a sufficiently bad act. i don't know that it is criminal. i don't think that this is a criminal matter, at least the i have seen. but in terms of the effect on his governorship, i think that is so bad, if that's true, koyptd it. if his position remains what it is, that i simply didn't know my two top aides had some simultaneous stroke and did this terrible thing without my authorization, then i think he stays as governor. but either way, i think his presidential campaign is pretty much over. >> dana, judgment in on that. do you agree with jeffrey on that one? also, the fact that as soon as he put out that paper statement yesterday, people were almost immediately jumping on it that it was too thin, it didn't go far muff and it took too long. is that nit-picking for nit-picking sake? or is he in hot water here? >> politicallies is not nit-picking. i was texting with some

republicans on capitol hill this morning who are -- have been on the receiving end of chris christie's flames. especially remember during the whole fight over sandy relief. >> absolutely. >> they are meeting with the -- you can see the smirk through the e-mail in the text that this is a guy who, you know, certainly is able to give it out and talk about the fact that people should come out and explain their issue and so forth and he put out that little statement. i think big picture, look, i'm from new jersey. i'm not -- i grew up not too far from fort lee. get the traffic will and i get the politics will. but if you are a voter in iowa, if you are a voter in new hampshire, you don't necessarily have to get the traffic patterns in new jersey to understand the human implication of this. not just the political, you know, oh, my gosh, this guy is a regular politician but also the fact there were kids on buses for hours and hours and apparently a woman -- ended up

dying because -- an emergency vehicle couldn't get to her. those are real-life implications. not just, you know, wow, this is actually just a regular politician. we are disappointed. >> kevin madden, are you prepared to make a case that this is being a little bit exaggerated in its scrutiny because politics is blood sport? that this is the way these offices work, often staffers are given the power of retribution and use it just this way. do you think you can make a case that will say -- >> i tell you, chris, like any good staffer, i'm a realist. you have to recognize that when you become a national political figure, that this level of scrutiny is going to -- is a guarantee, quite frankly. but what i would say that i think -- any analysis on either extreme, i think it is a bit off base. i don't think that this is absolutely the end of chris christie. anybody who says that i think is wrong. i think that anybody who says that this is all going to be over and it is much ado about nothing is wrong. how governor christie comes out of this politically is going to be crucial starting at 11:00.

one of the big problems he had to this point is this is a story that's now festered for 24 hours and the only people that have been talking about have been chris christie critics. starting at 11:00, had is an open wound right now in the political profile that needs stitching up. >> politics are not about reality. they are about perception. you and i both know that very well. this is a man that does not put himself out there the way most policies do. he says you have to be clean. have you to be straight. let's not play the game. i'm responsible for all new jerseyans. that's what makes me different from these other guys. is he going to get measured by that stick? if he does, just not knowing what your people were doing when it is this bad, shouldn't that be enough for to you pay the price? >> there isn't a good answer if he didn't know that is -- something that i think people will judge him harshly on. if he did know lee have a very -- tough time explaining that. what's most important is that he built a political profile

exactly as you said, chris, somebody who is a straight shooter, who welcome it is accountability of voters, welcomesing the accountability of critics. if starting at 11:00 he can take back that profile and shows he will be accountable by having heads roll and take charge of the situation, he could very well navigate this controversy. >> let me disagree with you a little bit, politics is all about perception. that's obviously a big part. it is also about reality. what happened here? who ordered these bridge closed? what was the connection between miss kelly who clearly was engaging in political retribution and david wildstein, kroym's high school buddy at the port authority, what did they know? when did they know it? how involved was christie? i don't think that we can make any kind of a judgment here until we know exactly how this all unfolded. if i could add, remember, chris christie has spent the last few days mocking this whole story, that it is a joke, and that he had nothing to do with it.

now we know that was at least false if not a lie. >> the democratic state senator was on the show earlier and said he thinks there is reasonable spigs will were criminal acts involved here. he points to reckless endangerment of people's lives and said possibly negligent criminal homicide. is that going too far? >> can i -- >> get in there. >> can i just say one thing politically? just to give a little bit of reality check here. kevin madden worked on republican primary campaigns. big picture. of course christie has gotten a lot of headlines. gotten a lot of attention, transformational party. if he did or does go ahead and decide to run for president, take this scandal aside, it would have already been very, very difficult for him. i spent a lot of time at w the republican party primary voters and chris christie is not their bag normally. it was already going to be difficult. he was going to have to transform the process because he

was such a different guy and people were going to have to look at him as somebody that can win the white house. this takes some of that away from him. again, you can change it depending what he says at 11:00. kevin, you speptd a lot of time with him, too. >> i will agree with that real quick. i don't think there are a bunch of folks out there that have support for chris christie previous tow this in places like new hampshire and iowa. is this going to push them away from chris christie altogether and never come back? no. is it enough they start looking at other options? there will be plenty of options come 2016, yes, it is. that's the big challenge for them. dana is absolutely right. >> good point to end on there. >> all good points. this is not the courtroom. this is the court of public opinion. we felt the keynote was the big test for chris christie. the big test for chris christie comes just a few hours from today. watch it if you care about his political future. >> we will have it live here on cnn. kevin, dana, jeffrey, great to see you. thank you so much. >> thanks. >> we will be right back.

ton of developing stories going on now. we hand to you the newsroom in the capable hands of carol costello. >> "newsroom" starts now. good morning. i'm carol costello. thank you so much for joining me. it is nearly three years before the presidential election. by many accounts the republican wrote to the white house runs through new jersey. get ready to hit the brakes. that traffic jam on the right side of your screen is blossoming into a political scandal for gop darling chris christie. he is expected to talk about that at a news conference in just a couple of hours. e-mail shows a top aide to the new jersey governor ordered lane closures to punish the